Heuchera plant named ‘Blackberry Ice’

ABSTRACT

The new and distinct hybrid plant of  Heuchera  named ‘Blackberry Ice’ with foliage color that changes throughout the year emerging in the spring as iridescent purple with lighter pinkish purple interveinal distal regions with dark greenish purple veins. Foliage then progresses to intense silvering with dark green with purple undertones and by late season and into winter intensifying the purple and decreasing the silvery regions between the veins. The very light pink campanulate flowers appear on a branched panicle effective over a long period. The new plant is vigorous, compact in habit and tolerates heat and humidity well.

Botanical denomination: Heuchera hybrid.

Cultivar designation: ‘Blackberry Ice’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Coral Bells in the Saxifragaceae family and given the cultivar name of ‘Blackberry Ice’. Heuchera ‘Blackberry Ice’ was hybridized by Kevin A. Hurd on Jul. 3, 2009 at a nursery in Zeeland, Mich., USA. The seed or female parent was ‘Plum Royale’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 20,935 and the pollen or male parent was a proprietary unreleased hybrid known as Heu-08-04-01 (not patented) (‘Pinot Noir’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 20,434×‘Mocha’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 18,386). ‘Pinot Noir’ has both Heuchera brizoides and H. villosa in the parentage and ‘Mocha’ is a selection of H. villosa. Heuchera ‘Blackberry Ice’ was first selected in the spring of 2010 and passed final evaluation in the fall of 2011 from among thousands of other seedlings from the same cross and hundreds of other crosses. Heuchera ‘Blackberry Ice’ was has been asexually propagated by division at the same nursery in Zeeland, Mich. and by careful tissue culture propagation, and the resultant plants have remained stable and exhibit the same characteristics as the original plant for multiple generations.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In comparison to the female parent, ‘Plum Royale’, the new plant has broader vein color width, more acute leaf lobe apices.

The nearest comparison varieties are Heuchera ‘Plum Royale’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 20,935 and ‘Plum Pudding’ (not patented). Heuchera ‘Plum Royale’ flowers are more pink and the flowers of ‘Plum Pudding’ are more cream-colored than the light pink of ‘Blackberry Ice’. The foliage of ‘Plum Pudding’ is less intense purple and more silver than the new plant with less of the contrasting deep green in the veins, and ‘Plum Royale’ has foliage of more cupped downward, have less contrasting green with the purple compared with ‘Blackberry Ice’. In comparison to the male parents and grandparents, Heuchera ‘Blackberry Ice’ has more intense purple and silver in the foliage and whiter flowers.

Heuchera ‘Blackberry Ice’ differs from its parents as well as all other Coral Bells known to the applicant in the following combined traits:

-   -   1. The foliage color of ‘Blackberry Ice’ changes throughout the         year emerging iridescent purple with lighter pinkish purple         interveinal distal regions with dark greenish purple surrounding         the veins.     -   2. Foliage then progresses to intense silvering with purple         undertones and by late season and into winter intensifying the         purple and decreasing the silvery regions between the veins.     -   3. The very light pink campanulate flowers appear on a branched         panicle effective over a long period.     -   4. The new plant is vigorous, compact in habit and tolerates         heat and humidity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The photographs of the new plant demonstrate the overall appearance of the plant including the unique traits. The colors are as accurate as reasonably possible with color reproductions. Some slight variation of color may occur as a result of lighting quality, intensity, wavelength, and direction or reflection.

FIG. 1 shows a close-up of the foliage of the new plant with early flowering.

FIG. 2 shows a one-year old plant with late winter or early spring foliage.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following description is based on a two-year old plant growing in a lightly shaded greenhouse in Zeeland, Mich., USA. A one-year old plant grown in a shaded trial garden with supplemental water and fertilizer was also used for further descriptions of late winter or early spring foliage colors. The new plant has not been grown under all possible environments and may phenotypically appear different under different conditions such as light, temperatures, fertilizer, and water, without any difference in genotype. The color descriptions used are from the 2001 edition of The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart except where common dictionary terms are used.

-   Parentage:     -   -   Female (seed parent).—‘Plum Royale’ U.S. Plant Pat. No.             20,935.         -   Male (pollen).—Heu-08-04-01 (a non-patented, proprietary,             unreleased hybrid of ‘Pinot Noir’ U.S. Plant Pat. No.             20,434×‘Mocha’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 18,386). -   Plant habit: Hardy herbaceous perennial with basal rosette of     foliage; mounded foliage about 26 cm tall and 45 cm in diameter. -   Roots: Fibrous, finely branched. -   Growth rate: Rapid, rooting from cutting in two weeks and finishing     in three-liter container in about 3 months. -   Foliage: Cordate, serrate, sparsely hirsutulous, palmately lobed     with up to seven main lobes each having three or more sub-lobes;     blade up to about 14.5 cm long and 13.5 cm wide, average about 10.5     cm long and 10.0 cm wide; undulate, being pinched together at     abaxial indentations of lobes in such a way that the adaxial surface     is elevated by up to 1.5 cm, and occasionally lightly concavely     cupped upward; leaf color is variable with season. -   Leaf color: Spring young emerging leaves adaxial nearest RHS N186C     with little or no silver, spring young emerging leaves abaxial     between RHS N186C and RHS N186D; mid-season flowering time leaves     adaxial surrounding veins nearest RHS N186A, silvering between veins     between RHS N187B and RHS N187C with some extra tinting of     iridescent purple nearest RHS N77B; abaxial mid-season leaves     between RHS N186B and RHS N186C; adaxial winter and early spring     leaves surrounding veins nearest RHS N186A with area between the     veins between RHS N77B and RHS 77C; abaxial winter and early spring     leaves nearest RHS N186C; winter shaded leaves adaxial surrounding     veins nearest RHS 139A and area between veins between RHS 191C and     RHS 189C with margin tinting of nearest RHS 187B; winter shaded     leaves abaxial nearest RHS 183B with tinting of RHS N77B and RHS     194B. -   Leaf margin: Dentate to hirsutulous with lobules finely fimbricate     to mucronate at apices. -   Leaf apex: Rounded, mucronate. -   Leaf base: Cordate, auriculate with overlapping lobes. -   Leaf surface: Sparsely hirsutulous abaxial and adaxial; adaxial     slightly vernicose when young in spring, matte when mature; abaxial     vernicose all season. -   Leaf quantity: Dense, about 50 per plant. -   Veins: Palmate, hirsutulous; ridged abaxial. -   Vein color: On emerging spring foliage adaxial nearest RHS 186A at     base and nearest RHS N186C distally with abaxial nearest RHS N186C;     mid-season flowering time adaxial between RHS 183C and RHS 183D     proximally and distally nearest RHS N186C, mid-season flowering time     abaxial nearest RHS N77B; winter adaxial blended between RHS 177C     and RHS 182C proximally nearest petiole and between RHS 139A and RHS     139B distally, with abaxial nearest RHS N77B. -   Petiole: Cylindrical, sparsely hirsutulous; up to about 17 cm long     and 3 mm wide. -   Petiole color: Distally RHS 182C and RHS 148C with slight tinting of     nearest RHS 185B proximally near base of plant where more shaded,     between RHS N186D and RHS N186C in higher light. -   Inflorescence: Mostly-vertical open panicle, medium density of     flowers; one panicle per main division, about 10 per plant; about     150 to 175 flowers per panicle; branches held at about 20 to 30     degree angle from vertical peduncle; lower branches about 8 cm long     and decreasing distally and about 0.5 mm diameter; panicle head     about 9 cm across and 38 cm tall; flowering starting in late spring     to early summer lasting for about 3 weeks; no significant fragrance     detected. -   Peduncle: Stiff, cylindrical, densely hirsutulous, about 55 to 60 cm     long and 3 mm in diameter at base. -   Peduncle color: Between RHS 187A and RHS N187A proximally and     nearest RHS 187B distally. -   Pedicel: Cylindrical, hirsutulous, about 2.5 mm long and 0.5 mm     diameter, curving slightly downwards to less than 30 degrees from     horizontal. -   Pedicel color: Nearest RHS 138B. -   Bracts: At panicle main nodes incised to five lobed, about 10 mm     long and 2.0 mm wide decreasing distally, with acute apices and base     sessile and truncate; color nearest RHS 187B. -   Buds one day prior to opening: Ellipsoid, about 4.0 mm long and 2.5     mm diameter; hirsutulous; facing semi-downwards less than 30 degrees     from horizontal. -   Bud color: Base nearest RHS 138B with tinting to portions nearest     RHS 187B; distal sepal portions nearest RHS 138A with portions     between of nearest RHS N155C with tinting nearest RHS 187B. -   Flower: Perfect, campanulate, actinomorphic, about 9.0 mm long and     5.0 mm in diameter at face; individual flowers lasting about 4 days     on plant or as cut flower. -   Calyx: Five, apex acute, base fused in proximal half to form     hypanthium; about 4.0 mm long and 2.5 mm wide; facing semi-downwards     about 15 to 30 degrees from horizontal when initially opened. -   Calyx color: In the abaxial middle nearest RHS N155D with apical tip     about 0.5 mm long nearest RHS 143C and base 3.0 mm a mixture of     between RHS 139B and RHS 139C with tinting of nearest RHS 184C; in     the adaxial middle near white, lighter than RHS N155D with apical     tip about 0.5 mm long nearest RHS 143C and a base of nearest RHS     186D with tinting of RHS N144D. -   Petals: Five, oblanceolate, acute apex and tapered base, entire,     about 4.0 mm long and 1.0 mm wide in middle. -   Petal color: White, lighter than RHS 155D. -   Androecium:     -   -   Filaments.—Five, thin, about 5.0 mm long and less than 0.5             mm diameter; color white, lighter than RHS155D.         -   Anthers.—Color nearest RHS N163B.         -   Pollen.—Color nearest RHS 16C. -   Gynoecium: Two-beaked; bifid style with pistil split at ovary; 6 mm     long.     -   -   Ovary.—Half-inferior, about 3.0 mm long and 2.5 mm diameter,             pointed apex ending in style, base rounded, color nearest             RHS 144C.         -   Style.—Two, split apart at apex of ovary; about 5.0 mm long             and less than 0.5 mm diameter; slightly curving splitting             apart about 2.0 mm at distal region; color white, lighter             than RHS 155D before fertilization and afterward nearest RHS             187D with an apex white, lighter than RHS 155D.         -   Stigma.—Smaller than 0.5 mm diameter, globose; color lighter             than RHS 145D. -   Fruit: Two-beaked capsule, about 6 mm long and 3 mm in diameter at     widest portion; color nearest RHS 199A when mature. -   Seed: Ovoid, less than 1 mm long and wide; color black, nearest RHS     202A. -   Disease and pest tolerance: The new plant grows best with ample     moisture and drainage in either sun or shade. It is more tolerant of     hot and humid environments than typical Coral Bells. Cold hardy from     USDA zones 4 to 9. Other resistance and tolerance outside of that     normal for Heuchera is not known. 

I claim:
 1. The new and distinct Coral Bells plant named Heuchera ‘Blackberry Ice’ as herein described and illustrated with foliage changing colors throughout the seasons, comprising very light pink flowers and with improved heat and humidity tolerance suitable for landscaping or as cut flower or foliage decoration. 